Photo: John Phelan · CC BY 4.0FEMA puts Harrisville’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 64% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Harrisville gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (77%), then hurricanes (12%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded
What Harrisville faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
River and rain flooding
Hurricanes
Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.
What’s behind Harrisville’s grade
River and rain flooding is 77% of the building damage FEMA expects in Harrisville, and Harrisville’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 52% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 3%, at a rate in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.
B lower expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Harrisville’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $286K a year in losses across Harrisville: $234K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Harrisville flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Harrisville. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Harrisville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Cheshire County.7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Harrisville
Disasters that paid out in Harrisville itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Harrisville), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2008Severe Winter Storm$63K to the Town of Harrisville for repairs
- 2007Severe Storms and Flooding$93K to the Town of Harrisville for repairs
- 2005Record Snow$5K to the Town of Harrisville for repairs
- 2005Record Snow$3K to the Town of Harrisville for repairs
- 2005Record And/or Near Record Snow$3K to the Town of Harrisville for repairs
- 2003Snow$2K to the Town of Harrisville for repairs
Show all 7
- 2003Snow$3K to the Town of Harrisville for repairs
Cheshire County has had 27 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Cheshire County, 2016–2016.
Old photos of Harrisville after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Harrisville archive →Harrisville and its neighbors
Harrisville is 2nd of the 5 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dublin | Bless damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Harrisville | Bless damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Hancock | Bless damage than 58% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| Marlborough | C−more damage than 78% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Peterborough | C−more damage than 80% | river and rain flooding | 33 |
| Nelson | — | 648 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Roxbury | — | 299 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Harrisville faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
- Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
- Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
- The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
- Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
- Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
- Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
- Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
- Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Harrisville
Is Harrisville at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Harrisville has lower expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (77%) and hurricanes (12%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Harrisville in a flood zone?
Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Cheshire County, 21% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Harrisville?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Harrisville’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Harrisville?
By FEMA money that reached Harrisville, Severe Storms and Flooding (2007): $93K to the Town of Harrisville for repairs.
Is Harrisville at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (77%), and Harrisville’s rate for it is higher than 52% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Harrisville.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Harrisville’s residents lived in the 2020 census; OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.